Bonmarché blames poor weather for sluggish first quarter

Thursday 28 July 2016 - Elias Jahshan

Bonmarché has said poor weather was the primary reason why its latest quarterly report experienced drops in like-for-likes and overall sales, but its full-year outlook remains the same.

The women’s fashion value retailer posted a 3.6 per cent drop in sales for the 13 weeks to June 25, while like-for-likes plunged 8.1 per cent in that same period.

Bonmarché also reported a £2.8 million drop in full-year pre-tax profits to £9.6 million last month.

The retailer said the slow first-quarter sales was due to the wetter-than-usual spring and start to summer, which impacted its summer ranges.

“It is not unusual for external conditions to create significant variations in quarterly performance, and therefore our expectation for the full year remains unchanged on the assumption that trading conditions normalise through the autumn season,” the company said in a statement.